Restitution
by saiki.kensuke.yuuta
Summary: Shounenai, mostly fluff and angst. A SchuldichxKen pairing. Sometimes it takes a loss to learn you love someone. Please read and review! My debut fic. First fic in a long time. Thanks for your reviews! COMPLETE!
1. Restitution: Shuldich

Author's Note: This is my first fic in the longest while. I've been undergoing a huge hiatus, hoping for my writing style to undergo several changes. I'm a hard person to satisfy when it comes to my own work, and you can say I'm my evilest critic. I've decided to give this thing a go again, though it's been about five years or so since I last publicly posted my work.

**I would really appreciate feedback and reviews.** Be as harsh or as gentle as you'd like. I may not have posted anything in a long while, but I'm not new to writing, so I guess my being rusty is hardly an excuse. I'd appreciate it all the same. Flames are also good as long as they are constructive and have some kind of basis and truth to them.

I also take requests by e-mail. If you have any fic requests, please check out my profile for the link to my e-mail and all other information there. At the very bottom of my profile is the info I need from you if you'd like me to write something for you. I'd be more than happy to.

Disclaimer: I do not own Weiss Kruez (Knight Hunters), and I do not own the characters.

Warnings: Fluff, shounen-ai. Nothing too deep or serious.

Pairing: SchuldichxKen

Fic Note: I'm writing this pairing because I can't seem to find enough of it. ;; Hopefully it's not that bad. Oneshot. Might become a two-shot if people are curious about Ken's side of the story and I get enough reviews about it. Maybe even the a third part containing the reactions of the other three members. If not, hopefully Schuldich's part of the story will suffice. Sorry if any of this is out of character. ;; It is kind of an AU...I haven't watched enough of the series to make out either character well enough yet. I've only got what I know from the 5 episodes I've seen.

**Restitution: Schuldich**

Everywhere he looked, a sharp pang would hit his heart, every single time. A pain so unbearable that words couldn't express, nor tears. Even walking down the empty cooridors where there was nothing but silence, Schuldich still heard the young brunette's innocent voice, calling out to him.

_"Schu! I'm home! Aren't you going to say hi to me?"_

Each time he would turn around, and each time he would only be met with silence. What was meant to be there in the first place. Sometimes Schuldich would laugh at how pathetic he must seem, constantly looking for something that wasn't there. The fact that he was all alone angered Schuldich, and each time he was reminded of his lonliness, he then turned to blaming Weiss. It was, of course, because of them that Ken-his beloved Ken-had gone missing.

Ken and Schuldich had been in a relationship for only three months now, but to Schuldich, it seemed like they had been together for ages. Yet in the blink of an eye, at the first call of a mission, Ken had been whisked away without a trace. Of course, he always thought bitterly to himself when his mind brought up that thought, both he and Ken should have been ready for such a moment. After all, they were both assassins on rival teams, and when you're called for a mission, you are expected to go. When the time finally came about a month ago, Schuldich was surprised at how ready Ken had been. He was even more surprised at how reluctant he was to let the youth go. Of all times for the tables to have turned, it had been then. For once it was not Ken that needed Schuldich, but it was ultimately Schuldich that was in need of Ken.

_Ken had been silent all afternoon. He had just simply lay there, content in Schuldich's arms, but there was something that had been bothering the brunette, Schuldich knew. He had been with the youth far too long. However, he would just wait until Ken would say something. He would give the boy his privacy and wait, instead of prying for the answers that Schuldich was dying to know and find. Finally, Ken sighed._

_"Schu...?"_

_Schuldich had smiled and ruffled Ken's hair affectionately, smiling. "What is it, kitten?"_

_He felt Ken shudder at the touch, not in a disgusted way, but in a way that Schuldich didn't like. Ken had turned around slowly, looking Schuldich in the eyes. "I was recently assigned a mission..."_

_Schuldich sighed. Was that really all? This happened quite often, after all, they were assassins. Schuldich chuckled. "So why do you look so worried, hm, pet?"_

_At this Ken had looked down, his face showing one of deep contemplation. Where was that expression of annoyance? Seeing as he wasn't going to get an answer right away, Schuldich let go of Ken for the moment and searched his drawers for a cigarette. He lit it, and began to smoke on it slowly, blowing smoke into Ken's face, hoping to get some kind of amusing reaction. The youth never liked it when he smoked. He got a reaction, it just wasn't the one he was expecting._

_His angel was soon crying. Schuldich put the cigarette out quickly, disregarding that he had just ruined his expensive nightstand in the process. "What the hell?" Schuldich had thought, "Is my smoking habit really that terrible to him?"_

_He held Ken and began kissing him lightly all over the younger boy's face while also wiping away tears. "Come on, kitten. This is ridiculous. You're acting like the world is falling apart."_

_Ken eventually stopped crying. There was an awkard silence between them, Schuldich watching Ken intently while Ken kept staring at Schuldich's chest, just staring. It was starting to annoy Schuldich very much. It wasn't like Ken to be this angsty. Where had his little light gone? Where was the smile from his beloved angel? Finally Ken decided to break the silence._

_"I'm scared, Schu..."_

_"About...?" Schuldich was getting slightly annoyed since Ken wasn't giving him a straight answer. He was becoming more and more tempted to just rummage through the youth's mind to just get a blunt response._

_"The mission."_

_That again. What was so bad about this mission anyway? It wasn't like they hadn't been seperated before for a mission. In fact, now that Schuldich thought about it, Ken had never been so emotional about leaving for a mission. "Is that really all? Or is something else bothering you?" Schuldich asked, getting a bit more impatient. For goodness sake, why couldn't the kid spit an answer out?_

_Something inside Ken seemed to snap at that moment, and he looked at Schuldich with anger in his eyes, which left Schuldich confused. Only about three days later could Schuldich assume that the anger he had seen had not been directly for him, rather Ken had probably been furious at himself for not being able to express anything. Ken never seemed to have problem with expression, which is probably why he had looked so upset._

_The anger did not last long. In fact, soon after, Ken's expression changed into a very happy smile as he suddenly jumped out of bed and decided that he wanted to have a fun date with Schuldich. Something they hadn't done in a while. Schuldich of course agreed to this, grateful that the mood had loosened up between them. Soon after the date, Ken had to go to the flower shop to meet the other members of Weiss. _

_And after that...well after that, Ken went missing._

_It took Schuldich three days to find out, after badgering Omi for a long time, that Ken had been sent along with Aya and Youji, by Persia for a mission in New York. And only just one day after that, did Schuldich figure out why Ken had been so upset. Omi couldn't have explained it simpler._

_"Ken didn't tell you? It's a high-risk mission. They may never come back. If any of them survive, they will probably come individually. Their orders are to attack three different targets. They are not to meet each other after the mission is complete. They kill one, hope for the best, and return."_

_"Why did you not ask Schwarz for assistance?" because of himself and Ken, a small bond between the two assassin teams formed, and angry feelings cooled._

_"It was none of your concerns. There was no need to send in more men than necessary. They are all very capable."_

_He had said it so non-chalantly, it angered Schuldich. He rammed Omi against a wall. "How can you be so indifferent to this? Where did they go? Why are you the only one here?"_

_Omi hung his head. "It's not like I wanted to stay..." his head lifted up, tears in his eyes, fist clenched, "I want to be with them too!"_

_Schuldich snorted, "Oh cut the crap already. You just wanted to save your hide, right?"_

_Omi sighed. "There are some things you just wouldn't understand..."_

_"Try me."_

_He then had to listen to Omi ramble on about how because he was Persia's right hand man, he had to stay behind. If something happens to Weiss, he would have to be the one to continue it and teach the next group the ropes. It wasn't going to be easy for him either, Schuldich knew, but damn it wasn't fair. His beautiful Ken was gone, out on some dangerous mission, and here Schuldich was incapable of assisting. Omi never did tell Schuldich where Ken was specifically. His mind-defenses were so strong, Schuldich couldn't even dig out the information. New York was as much as he could get out of the boy, and as far as he could tell, that might not have even been the truth. Just something for Schuldich to live on, to hope that Ken would come back. Just something for him to think about, letting him know that the boy was somewhere and not nowhere._

Schuldich sighed. Three months, Youji had been the first to return. Five more, and Aya was back with the other two at the flower shop. Schuldich eventually stopped coming by everyday. He was tired of the disappointment of not seeing Ken there. Of not seeing him fighting with Youji, getting cold stares from Aya, and having Omi clean up after his mess. Tired of not seeing him there, waiting for Schuldich, come running to Schuldich every time he would visit with his big brown orbs, smiling at only him. All of Ken's most special smiles had always been reserved for him.

Schuldich, now in a very famous restaurant, sat alone in a large booth, drinking wine and looking out the glass window, thinking about Ken. They had started being together after a chance peaceful meeting in a normal setting. April. Ken had gotten his mission at the very beginning of August. It was now mid-March. Almost time for their anniversary. Only one month left before Schuldich thought he wouldn't be able to bear Ken's memory any longer. One month left.

Setting down his wine glass and tapping the side of it, causing a small ping, Schuldich was soon lulled off into memory.

_He had been watching the boy silently, watching him teach the children soccer. He thought with bitter amusement, would those kids still be so trusting and friendly if they knew how many people Ken had killed? Young and old? Men and women alike? Would Ken still retain his innocence even if the whole world knew what was really dormant inside of his friendly exterior?_

_And yet, Schuldich realized, even if the world knew who he was, Ken would probably never change. He would still be smiling, though perhaps more painfully so, and he would still be a kind, caring, sensitive idiot. Ken probably had the least purpose to kill in Weiss, and that would keep his level of purity, no matter how much blood stained his hands._

_When the children had gone, he had snuck up behind Ken, who was packing his things in a gym bag. He was wearing a white soccer jersey and black shorts, with socks up to his knees and soccer shoes. He had just thrown on a thin blue jacket with a hood when Schuldich decided to finally make known his presence. _

_"So the kitten isn't such a klutz after all."_

_Ken had turned around, face furious as soon as he recognized who Schuldich was. "You! What do you want?"_

_Schuldich had raised up his hands in surrender, a smile dancing on his lips. He had been very amused. "Relax, pet. I'm not here to pick a fight."_

_Ken had looked at him suspiciously. "So what are you here for, then?"_

_For this, Schuldich for the first time in his life, didn't have some kind of smart remark or answer. Trying to hide his embarassment, he shrugged. "Thought I would spend a bit of time with the enemy, you know, casually."_

_The suspicion never left Ken's face for a moment. Schuldich chuckled. Ken really didn't have any trust in him at all. "So what are you suggesting we do?"_

_"Play soccer."_

_Both of them blinked at this, Schuldich was surprised at how naturally the answer came out, and Ken was shocked at Schuldich even suggesting such a thing. "A-are you serious?" suddenly, Ken's expression changed to one of childish interest, "You really want to play? Do you even know how?"_

_Schuldich was still trying to understand what kind of situation his big mouth had landed himself into, but he answered Ken with a snap, "Yes, of course I want to play. If I didn't, I wouldn't have said it. And of course I know how to play. I'm not stupid, you are the one with the negative IQ."_

_As if to emphasise the statement, Schuldich rapped his fist on Ken's head lightly. Blushing from annoyance, Ken pushed Schuldich's hand away, "All right, all right! You don't have to be such a pain about it", curiosity had taken the better of Ken then, as he took off his jacket and reopened his gym bag, "But why play with me? And why now, out of the blue?"_

_Schuldich laughed as Ken pulled out his soccer ball. The kid was just way too easy. For someone who should be on their guard with talking to the enemy, he was sure eager to play a friendly game of soccer. That was what attracted Schuldich to Ken in the first place. The fact that even though he was on enemy sidelines, Ken seemed to constantly give people like him a second chance. That was sometimes more than what some people actually deserved. _

_Schuldich found himself relaxing, suddenly, and answering Ken with honesty. Another quality Ken seemed to bring out of people. "I was bored watching you play with children not even in your league. Besides, I want to see how good you really are."_

_Ken grew flustered and shouted, "You were watching me! Why you-who gave you the right to stalk other people, huh!"_

_Schuldich allowed himself a small smile as he patted Ken on the head. "There, there now. If you don't want people watching you, you shouldn't be playing games in such an open space. I was only just passing by, when I saw you playing soccer with those little children, and I merely stopped to watch. Just to see you trip all over yourself, but I guess you're not as sloppy as you are in battle", he finished with mock disappointment._

_This pissed Ken off. "Just who do you think you are!" Ken tackled Schuldich down to the ground, but only found himself being dominated by his enemy because Schuldich was soon on top of him with a very amused smile, pinning his arms and legs so that the only thing he could do was stare at Schuldich with much frustration._

_"Come now, Ken. I don't believe I've done anything illegal", Schuldich said with a smirk._

_Ken grumbled, but was blushing because Schuldich was so close. Schuldich noticed. "Mmhmm. I see you don't mind your current predicament one bit now, do you, kitten?"_

_"Shut up!" Ken muttered and tried to free himself, but failed miserably. He pouted, "I hate you! Get off of me!"_

_"And if I don't...?"_

_"If you don't, I'll just-" Ken was cut off at that moment because Schuldich finally gave into the temptation of kissing Ken. Ken's eyes widened as he fought against it. _

_Schuldich finally let go after a short while, he too had been shocked at his sudden action, but regained his composure quickly, however. Getting off of Ken, he licked his lips, "You don't taste bad at all, KenKen."_

_Shock turned to annoyance and quickly turned into anger. "You sick, sick bastard!" Ken shouted as he hurridly got up, threw on his jacket and ran with his half-open gym bag into the sunset, heading off to who knew where. Probably to Weiss, Schuldich pondered. He was kind of disappointed that Ken hadn't responded the way he had wanted, but then again, the action was a bit surprising and unexpected to even himself. _

_He wrote it off as just an action done out of boredom. That was when he noticed that Ken had left behind something. His soccer ball. Grinning, Schuldich took the ball and walked back to his house with it. "He'll be wanting this, I'm sure. I'd better return it to him tomorrow", Schuldich had thought with much amusement. He couldn't wait to see the expression on little Ken's face when he appeared at the flower shop to return the ball._

Schuldich found himself nearby the flower shop, on the opposite side. There he saw the other three Weiss members, looking still a bit sullen. It gave him some personal satisfaction to know that they were still worried about Ken. That they too had not yet forgotten. Probably pained from their own share of happy memories of the youth. Ken had that kind of effect on a person. His positive and idiotic energy could really seep into your system.

_He remembered the dangerous look Aya had given him when he had kicked the door open carelessly to the shop. He remembered Omi's wary look and Youji's cautious stare when he snuffed out his cigarette on one of the tables. But he especially remembered Ken's furious expression when he had come out from the back in a cute blue apron, much to Schuldich's amusement. In fact, Ken didn't look all that bad at all, in Schuldich's opinion. Ken had looked like he was just about ready to maul him._

_"What are you doing here!" Ken shouted the question that was probably on all of their minds._

_"Now now", Schuldich had remembered himself speaking smoothly, "Is that any way to talk to a savior of your greatest possession?"_

_Ken's eyes widened a bit in confusion, but his voice was still filled with annoyance, "What are you talking about?"_

_Schuldich had laughed as he let go of the soccer ball at his side and started to dribble. "Oh, I don't know...maybe this round thing looks familiar to you...?" he almost died at the look Ken had on his face. It was priceless. The shock, the recognition, and then the horror._

_"Hey! Give that back!" Ken had been so annoyed at the German's presence that he hadn't even realized Schuldich had his ball until he started bouncing it. _

_Schuldich stopped dribbling it, and held it at his side again, "Hm. I don't think so. If you really want it back, I believe you'd owe me a little something. Besides, you were sure in a hurry to leave it behind yesterday. I doubt you even noticed it missing until now."_

_Ken growled, "I-I knew it was gone! Now give it back!" he lunged for it._

_Schuldich was already ready for Ken's reaction. He had moved out of the way easily. "I don't think so, Siberian! You shouldn't lie to a telepath."_

_Flustered, Ken eventually gave up trying to get the ball after several attempts. Schuldich grinned, the boy was at his mercy all because of a soccer ball? Schuldich was beginning to consider stealing Ken's soccer ball before every mission they would have against each other. Battling him would become that much easier. Besides, Schuldich was finding himself quite attracted to annoying Ken, and perhaps even a little attracted to Ken himself, much to Schuldich's annoyance._

_Schuldich grinned, "All right. I've had my fun. If you really want the soccer ball, why don't you come here?"_

_The other three Weiss members were on their guard, Schuldich could feel it, but he didn't much care. They all watched as Ken cautiously came up to Schuldich. Schuldich grabbed Ken's shirt, pulling him closer, and quickly whispered, "Now that's a good kitten" before kissing Ken smartly on the mouth._

_Ken blushed furiously, shocked. Schuldich laughed as he heard the thoughts swirling in Ken's mind. How he wasn't gay, how he was so embarassed that the other members of Weiss were watching, just as dumbfounded as he was, and how this was ridiculous all over a soccer ball. The last one made Schuldich's day. "Should've thought of that yesterday, pet", Schuldich snickered. _

_He released Ken, and dropped the soccer ball, leaving the store. He left behind a flustered and confused Ken, and three completely taken aback Weiss members. Schuldich didn't even know what drove him to act that way. It just seemed right at the time. After that moment, Ken couldn't get Schuldich out of his mind. And frankly, Schuldich couldn't forget about Ken either. To a point, that pissed him off. Especially since he eventually found himself looking for Ken everyday, and when he wasn't, when he was trying to stay away from this new addiction, Ken always seemed to end up finding him._

_It was always the same. It always started with an excuse, which led to an argument, which led to kissing, which led to more confusion. Confusion led to curiosity, curiosity to a strange sort of friendship, and during that friendship, things began to come together for the two assasin teams, surprisingly enough. They showed up often enough at one another's doors to get the team members of the opposite side to start getting used to them. Tolerance became acceptance._

_And in the end, somehow, they got to love._

He was finally back at his house. He dreaded his own home so much now. Nothing, not his riches, not his paintings, not his most expensive items or attire could make up for the void he was feeling right now. A void that was growing in him every single day. Schuldich kicked open the door to his room that he had once shared with Ken. He hadn't stepped into the room in so long, when he went in, the room seemed so cold, dark, and unfamiliar to him.

He lit a cigarette, a habit he recently picked up again since Ken's disappearance. He sat down, and felt under the bed, puffing on his cigarette, he pulled out a small white box. He stared at the white box a moment, not even sure why he was even holding it anymore, or why he even wanted to pull it out to begin with, especially now. But he guessed he just wanted to remember. In fact, truth be told, Schuldich was scaring himself lately. The memories that Schuldich had been holding strong were slowly fading. First the gentle memory of his lover's voice had stopped haunting him in his house. He was starting to hear reality. Silence.

Even trips to the flower shop no longer seemed to trigger many memories. There were still some he remembered, but he was no longer sure if they were real or not. They were no longer as strong. Schuldich realized something else, as he slowly opened up the white box.

He was beginning to accept Ken for dead. And that was the last thing Schuldich wanted to do, without any confirmation from the members of Weiss. And even if it were true, he refused to forget Ken entirely, he felt that he owed the boy that much. Ken was his first lover that had meant something to him. A lover that was more than just a face.

The pictures fell out, and so did a smaller blue leather box. Inside that box was a pair of rings. Ken had been obsessing about wanting to wear couple rings with Schuldich for so long, but Schuldich never saw the purpose to them, until a few weeks before the mission was probably ever mentioned, Ken had brought up the subject again over breakfast.

_"Hey, Schu?"_

_"Hn. What is it, kitten?"_

_Ken bit a small bit of his sandwich. "Um...I was wondering...if you ever got around to finding time to buy couple rings..."_

_Schuldich rolled his eyes. "I still don't understand what is so important about them. They're such a nuisance to the finger, don't you think?"_

_"Oh...yeah...maybe a little", Ken replied with disappointment._

_Schuldich sighed, "I just don't see the point to them."_

_"Schu!"_

Ken had looked annoyed at him after that, and began to explain how it symbolized their love. Furthermore, when seperated during missions, it would also be a reminder not to get killed, because they would be waiting for each other. This got Schuldich thinking a bit. A reminder that Ken would always be there for him didn't seem like a bad reason to have a ring on his finger, even if he did hate wearing things he considered so confining. After this explaination, Schuldich had eventually figured out Ken's ring size, and bought the pair of silver rings, deciding to surprise the boy on his birthday that coming December.

But December had come and gone only a while ago, as Schuldich reminded himself bitterly. He had forgotten in his cloud nine bubble of love, that in their line of work, things shouldn't be taken for granted. Tomorrow wasn't always guaranteed for the average human, and yet in their position, the risk of tomorrow not happening for them was even higher. Schuldich cursed himself for not at least giving Ken the small token he always subtly requested for before he had left. Even if when he gave the ring to Ken, it wasn't during a special occassion. Even if Schuldich could still not declare his undying love to Ken, at least he could've hinted it with the rings.

And now that Schuldich was on this line of thought, he hadn't even said his proper good-byes to the youth. He hadn't even declared his love. How the world can turn on a person. How tragedy loves to mock a person and bestow upon them regret.

With much pain in his heart, Schuldich put the leather box aside and rummaged through the few pictures that he had of himself, Ken, and just Ken. He smiled as he looked at several of them, the ones with only Ken in them. The boy was so photogenic. So photogenic in fact, it almost looked as if he would just come right out of the photographs. Each smile Schuldich looked at, put his heart in more and more pain. But Schuldich didn't care, he felt that he deserved it. He wasn't the best boyfriend that he could've been. Ken needed a sensitive, loving boyfriend. Not the jerk that Schuldich had been. Ken never deserved that, and yet, Ken did what he always did. Stuck by and gave Schuldich second, third, fourth, hell-even sixteenth chances. Ken had stood by him, through every heartless word that Schuldich had spoken, taken in all of the verbal and slight physical abuse he put Ken through when in a bad mood-or worse, drunk.

Sure Ken yelled and fought back. Of course Ken got moody as a result as well-but never once did he threaten to leave Schuldich, to give up on their love. Never once. That's what Schuldich missed most of all, over all the reprimanding and the annoyances that Ken provided, he missed Ken's caring. The boy's love. He missed so much how Ken never seemed to expect so much out of him. He was even beginning to miss Ken waking him up so darn early in the morning-a ritual Schuldich hated so much, just so they could both go exercising. He would trade all his money, all that he owned, just to see Ken's face at least one more time. Just to hear that beautiful voice one more time.

And somehow, while looking through all those memories, he snapped back to reality and realized that his feet had unconciously led him to the front door. Placing the box of memories on a table, he opened the door, looking outside, for no particular reason at all. He was greeted by rain. A small, simple shower. Feeling as if he were floating, he stepped slowly outside.

_Ken was standing outside in the rain in his soccer jersey and ripped jeans, hair flat against his face and his beautiful head thrown back, his arms spread out, feeling the rain on his hands and fingertips. Schuldich had been brushing his teeth when he spotted Ken like this, outside the window of their house, and smiled. How peaceful Ken looked. How beautiful he was. _

_He had walked to the door after ten minutes, realizing Ken wasn't coming in. Schuldich was worried the youth would catch a cold. _

_"You should come inside, kitten."_

_Ken had turned to Schuldich then, and the sight of him made Schuldich breathless. He was beautiful. Hands on his hips, Ken had thrown back his head and laughed, "Why? This feels just great!"_

_Schuldich had rolled his eyes, "You'll catch a cold, pet. That's just more work for me. I'll have to sit by your side for the next two weeks cooking for you and making sure you get better, and you know how much I hate cooking."_

_Ken had laughed again. "Have you ever stood out in the rain before, Schu?"_

_Schuldich scrunched his nose. "Hmph! I think not. Unlike you, I don't see the use in getting wet."_

_Ken smiled and whined, "But Schuuuu! It feels great!"_

_Schuldich groaned. Where did Ken get these weird ideas? To Schuldich, 'great' was not an adjective to describe getting wet in the rain. "You'll come in this instant", he said with a stern no-nonsense tone._

_Ken had sighed then, and walked up to Schuldich, providing him an evil grin. "You ruin my fun sometimes", Ken said, but before he went into the house, he shook himself, splattering water all over Schuldich who did not approve at all._

_Ken grinned, "But that makes up for it!" and he zipped into the house, heading for the bathroom._

_Schuldich frowned, "Hey! Come back here, you'll pay for that!"_

_Ken had laughed, sticking out his tongue at Schuldich. "Catch me if you can, you crazy German!"_

_"You mean sexy German", Schuldich retorted before chasing a laughing Ken further into the large house, "Let's not get our adjectives screwed up here!"_

_"Whatever you say!"_

It was raining much harder now. Much like the day Ken had been outside. Slowly, Schuldich found himself walking outside in the rain. He could barely feel the water on him, probably because he was probably devoid of much feeling now. He soon found himself sitting down on the first step, open to the outdoors and not covered by a roof, closing his eyes, and imitating as best he could how he remembered Ken on that day. Eyes closed, head to the sky, arms outstretched...

...And then he heard thunder, and the gate to his house swinging. He opened his eyes when he no longer felt the rain on him. Opening his eyes, he felt himself staring into familiar brown orbs, belonging to a skinny young youth with a small healing wound on the side of his beautiful face, wearing a white t-shirt and blue jeans, holding a large, black umbrella over himself and Schuldich.

Schuldich was at a loss for words.

_Arms wrapped around his waist from behind. "Schu! I love you!"_

He got up slowly, to slowly meet the figure in front of him.

_A face buried into his back._

Moving slowly towards the figure, arms rising to meet the youth.

_A loving embrace._

Schuldich pulled the young boy into a strong hold, causing the youth to drop the umbrella out of pleasant surprise, returning the embrace with slightly less energy, Schuldich not noticing the small wince the boy gave because of a hidden wound in his side, hidden under his shirt and all the bandages. But Schuldich didn't have to know about all of that now. He knew that the older man must have missed him twice as much as Ken had been missing him.

_Three words whispered to him. A voice speaking with such love and care, not really expecting an answer. Not forcing him to reply._

For the first time, Schuldich was crying. Ken was back. His beloved Ken was back. His angel, his smile.

_Three words that had always been so hard to believe, so hard to say..._

The rain was stopping, the sun was coming out. Schuldich pulled back and took a good long look at Ken, who smiled back at him a goofy smile, as if nothing had changed.

Ken smirked, "I thought you said you'd never let yourself get wet...?"

As if he had never left...

Schuldich leaned in closer to Ken and whispered, "_That_...was _before _you came into my life..."

_A kiss that always tried to make up for what he could never bring himself to say...until now._

"I love you...Ken."

Ken's eyes widened from the shock of hearing those words, and Schuldich kissed him straight after saying it, causing thoughts of joy and amazement to swirl around wildly in his head.

When the kiss ended, Schuldich pulled away to look at Ken's beautiful face more, but Ken quickly hugged him tightly again. "I love you too, Schu..."

Schuldich would never take his love for granted again. He didn't even complain when Ken caused them both to fall over into Schuldich's garden, causing Schuldich to get all muddy as a result of the rain mixing with the soil. He only thought of Ken. His Ken was back. He was real, and he was here. There was no reason to be sad anymore. No more reason to worry, not for the time being. Schuldich smiled, ruffling Ken's hair. He was all right now, because his angel was back, alive and well.

This time, _God _was giving him a second chance. And he knew that was far more than he deserved.

OWARI

Saiki.Kensuke.Yuuta: So how was it, everyone? Good? Bad? Please review! I'm thinking of leaving this as a one-shot, but if you want Ken's side of the story of what happened, or the rest of the Weiss team's reaction to Ken's long MIA status in more detail, let me know. If I get badgered enough, I'll be more than happy to do it.

Also looking for one or two friendly beta-readers that don't mind holding a conversation as well as betaing. E-mail me if you are interested!

Thanks for reading! See you next fic I make. Coming up with more soon, promise!


	2. Restitution: Ken

Author's Note: Thank you all for your words of encouragement! As promised, I have created a more Ken-centric side of the story to this fic!

I updated quickly, didn't I? I was so encouraged by the small amount of reviews I recieved, I made the second part of the fic. Don't know what I'm going to write next, it may take a while for my next fic to come out, but I hope everyone enjoys this one for a small while longer.

**I would really appreciate feedback and reviews.** Be as harsh or as gentle as you'd like. I may not have posted anything in a long while, but I'm not new to writing, so I guess my being rusty is hardly an excuse. I'd appreciate it all the same. Flames are also good as long as they are constructive and have some kind of basis and truth to them.

Disclaimer: I do not own Weiss Kruez (Knight Hunters), and I do not own the characters.

Warnings: Fluff, shounen-ai. Nothing too deep or serious. Little more angsty in here.

Pairing: SchuldichxKen.

Fic Note: The final part for this fic I'm considering is the other members of Weiss and how they might have taken Ken being missing. I'm not quite sure if that's overdoing the fic a little, and I would like reader feedback on that. I would prefer it if you signed in for your review, but I will also accept anonymous reviews for the moment. If the flaming gets out of hand and is not constructive, then I will change my review options back to verified reviews only.

**Restitution: Ken**

He knew he was probably the most nervous of them all on this mission. Mostly because he was the least likely to survive of the three Weiss members out on their current mission, because he was the one that had the most to lose. It would have been a lot less complicated for Ken if he had never gotten so involved with Schuldich. It would have been so much simpler if he had remained just like the other three members of Weiss. If he had just remained the idiotic klutz of a flower boy that he had been, and stuck to only being with friends. Then he knew that even if he died, he wouldn't be missed as terribly. He wouldn't be letting anyone down. He would have just been given a funeral with honors for doing what he was supposed to have been doing, his job.

Ken was probably the one most dreading his final fate in this mission. Persia had been very clear, each of them were to be left on their own. To rendevouz later would completely throw the mission into jepoardy for two reasons. The first being that the hassle of having to meet up with a partner after a successful kill would lead to probably the target's favor, enhancing their chances of escape. The other being, that if outnumbered by quite the sum, in this mission in a foreign country, it was better to lose one than two or even all of them. Weiss was not an organization fond of hiring its assassins. In fact, Weiss would rather keep its secret contained from the world, and keep only those worthy and capable of bearing such secrets and burdens. It was less of a pain for Weiss and even the world, to replace just one member rather than all three. In the possible event that all three would perish, however, Persia also made it clear to the four of them that Omi would have to stay behind-much to the youth's dismay.

Ken was usually never nervous for his missions with the other members, even if he was without the help of Schwarz, or even his lover, Schuldich. However, this time proved to be very different. This time, Manx nor Persia had given them any sign of the option to be 'in' or 'out' of the mission, as they had always been provided before. This mission was mandatory. It was also a high-risk mission, as the file they were given was labeled. And this was one of those rare cases where the members of Weiss were not properly informed of why exactly they had to assassinate these three figures, they only knew that they had to be eliminated. Ken knew better than to question Persia's motives. He had already been confronted with this dillema before, where Manx had simply stated that if he truly doubted Persia and his motives, then it was all over for Ken. He would be of no more use to Weiss. In fact, she even hinted that Ken may even end up being the next target, if that being the case based on the sole reason that he knew far too much. Though everyone knew that Ken was probably going to be the least likely to speak of and reveal Weiss in any case, he was just not that kind of person-but the fact that there was a probable chance that he just might would be reason enough for Persia to show no mercy.

The worst part of it all was, he hadn't been able to tell Schuldich properly of what exactly was going on before he had left.

_His wonderful Schuldich had asked him, as they lay in bed, why Ken was so afraid of the mission that Ken had finally found the courage to even mention to his lover the morning before the actual mission. The very day before he would take off. It was either now or never. Schuldich would have to know and be prepared to live without him, should he not survive. He frowned inwardly, as he couldn't find the words to even begin to express his feelings, let alone the mission itself._

_There was a silence that seemed to go on too long between them, until Ken felt Schuldich release him, much to his anguish. This only seemed like a bad omen to him, of a time to come. A time where the darkness would invite him, and he would be all alone in Hell. That's what Hell was, wasn't it? A place where you would never find peace, happiness or even the one you love again. A place so dark you wouldn't be able to see your hand in front of your own face. A place so cold that you would silently dream of Earth. A place more colorful than Hell, maybe even by chance-less painful._

_He suddenly smelled smoke. Ken was thrown into a panic, it was as if his thoughts of a smoking, billowing Hell was actually coming to life to take him down. Then realizing it was only Schuldich smoking the smokes that Ken disliked so much, he found himself shaking uncontrollably with tears of relief and a bit of anger mixed with slight annoyance that Schuldich had chosen now to smoke._

_He felt Schuldich's concern in his mind, and heard a small sizzle of Schuldich putting out the damned cigarette. Soon he was showered with kisses. It helped, but Ken was still worried. Schuldich's not knowing his situation, their situation, bothered Ken very much. It bothered him even more when he heard Schuldich joking about how he was acting like the world was falling apart. He didn't find that very funny at all, especially since the good-natured joke of his not-so-serious lover seemed to hit too close to home for comfort. He needed to tell Schuldich. It was now or never._

_"I'm scared, Schu..." was all Ken managed to spit out._

_He could tell he was driving his older lover to his wits end, trying to avoid looking into Ken's mind, Ken's soul-just to see what he was thinking. At this moment, Ken just wished that Schuldich just would. It would have made things so much simpler. _

_Simplicity, however, was a concept that didn't seem to agree with Ken when Ken needed simplicity the most._

_Ken couldn't stand the frustration this situation was giving him. Why was it, that he couldn't express what was needed to express? He had never hidden anything, and especially nothing like this, from Schuldich before. So why now? And why this particular burden? Shouldn't they be going through this together? Why only him? Why only him now, knowing that it will hurt Schuldich far more later, because Ken was now cheating Schuldich-for the first time-of the truth?_

_There was only one answer to that. Ken was afraid. Ken was afraid that even if he told Schuldich, he wouldn't even be able to come back. If he told Schuldich, his lover would probably insist on following him and helping him, and possibly dying for him. Ken never had much reason to kill. But if he was forced to kill or watch Schuldich be killed, he would blame no one but himself. He would insist on taking on the burden of innocent blood. He would insist on paying the price, even if it wasn't his to pay. Ken knew he was being very selfish in not telling Schuldich, but he loved the German too much. He needed the German too much._

_He needed a reason to come back, even if it wouldn't be enough for him to come back-due to only his natural lack of aggression. He needed something to come back to. It was damn selfish of him to force Schuldich who was so unsuspecting into a corner such as this one, and Ken knew it, and Ken was sorry for it. But Ken wasn't sorry enough that he felt that he was able to tell Schuldich about it._

_Ken bitterly realized that Youji had been right after all. For once, the playboy had managed to say something close enough to the truth. Ken would be better off not telling Schuldich anything about the mission, to let Omi handle the questions later, if suspicion arose. Because Ken wouldn't have the gall to do it. The blonde playboy had been so right._

Ken gripped the arm rests at his side so tightly during an unexpected turbulence that his knuckles were turning white. Everything about him was pale and sickly, causing Youji and Aya some concern. They disliked the fact that Ken would have to fight a seperate mission alone, and they further disliked how unprepared Ken was for this moment, which was very unlike Ken. Usually, even in his most nervous of moods, Ken would never reveal how _scared_ he really was about these missions. This time, however, was proving very very different. That is the fact the older two members of Weiss did not seem to settle with too well.

Ken, oblivious to everything around him, found himself rummaging frantically in one of his side pockets, and pulling out a slightly crumpled picture on a piece of paper. A source of comfort. A picture of him and Schuldich both smiling at a camera, and Ken looking like he's on the verge of tears. The picture was very recent. In fact, it was of earlier that morning.

_He had no memory of Schuldich to take with him. No memory to take with him to battle, no memory for the grave, Ken realized. With realization came a new prospect. He jumped out of bed and began attempting childishly to push Schuldich out of bed, pouting all the while._

_"Come on, Schu! I just got the best idea!" he had said excitedly._

_Schuldich had looked at him completely confused, but rightfully so-after all, Ken had just broken down crying, then looked very upset, and refused to share much information all in one go. The last being a huge first in their usually very close and intimate relationship. "What is it?" Schuldich had asked with caution._

_"Let's go out, Schu! I want to watch a movie and eat ice cream and stuff. You know, we haven't been able to do that for a while", he had looked at Schuldich expectantly._

_Shuldich had seemed to think about it for only a few seconds before smiling too. He ruffled Ken's hair. "Aa. For you, kitten? Why not..."_

_That morning, Schuldich denied him nothing. Ken dragged him to the movies, to the mall for shopping, and he got his ice cream. To wrap of the day, Ken had taken Schuldich to a picture making machine. "Come on, Schu!" he had said, "I want a new picture of us together!"_

_To that, Schuldich had agreed. Ken let Schuldich pick the background they would be in. After choosing a heart, Ken leaned on Schuldich's shoulder for the picture, and Schuldich had an arm around Ken, placing his head on top of Ken's. When the picture printed, Ken had been looking at it excitedly. He took it, showed it to Schuldich, and then looked at it again for a longer while. Ken had felt Schuldich's hand on his shoulder, questioning his contemplation minutes later. "What is it, pet...?"_

_Ken felt like he was going to break down crying, but he refused to leave Schuldich in tears. He turned and smiled, "Can I keep this, Schu...?"_

_Schuldich started laughing at him, ruffling his hair. Ken blushed, he didn't understand. Schuldich must've sensed this, and kissed Ken on the forehead. "You're too cute, Ken..." he explained, "So beautiful...I don't think you know."_

_Ken smiled. He loved it when Schuldich complimented him. It was different from when other people complimented him. Schuldich's compliments always fluttered his heart. Ken supposed it was love. Ken looked outside the mall, and frowned a bit. It was getting dark. "Schu..." Ken looked up at his lover, "What time is it?"_

_Schuldich had blinked for a moment, laughed at the question for a reason Ken could never seem to understand-Schuldich seemed to love laughing at his questions; and he checked his watch. "7:43, love", was his answer._

_"7:43..." Ken murmered. He was going to be late._

_Ken wrapped his arms around Schuldich's neck. "Schu...?"_

_"Yes...?"_

_Ken smiled. "Time to go. I have to meet at the flower shop for the mission by 8."_

_Schuldich looked disappointed. "So soon, my love?" he was unbearably close for Ken now._

_Ken blushed. "Y-yes..."_

_To Ken's surprise, instead of a kiss, Schuldich lifted him up. "Schu! What are you doing!"_

_Schuldich was laughing at him. "I'll take you to the flower shop, love."_

_"Really?"_

_He gave Ken a light peck on the cheek. "Really."_

The plane landed. Aya and Youji looked at Ken worriedly. The boy had quickly put the photograph away and was now sitting with his eyes closed. Ken was trying to relax...but all he kept seeing was Schuldich in his mind. The lover he felt that he had betrayed by coming here without saying anything. The one he felt that he was now in the process of lying a very long lie to. A situation in the opinion of the other Weiss, was not his fault, but in the end they couldn't stop Ken from blaming himself for the way things were going. Ken was too sensitive a person in that regard.

Youji was the one to walk up to Ken, placing a hand gently on Ken's shoulder, which seemed to startle the boy because he gave a jump and his eyes had shot open. Youji gave Ken one of his cocky smiles, an action Ken found extremely annoying most times. "Hey, you can't be so nervous, Ken."

Ken showed the expected reaction of annoyance at Youji's trademark smile and the suave tone. "I know...I _know!_" he snapped.

"Good", came Aya's cold voice from behind of them. The man was already prepared in his assassin attire.

"It's time to go. Youji, Ken. We all know our targets?"

"Yeah", Youji drawled. Ken merely nodded in response.

Aya looked back and forth critically at them, moreso at Ken. "All right then...remember...we're all on our own...we all know our escape routes that are prepared?"

They knew. Ken was to go by a helicoptor that was going to be provied, Aya would be taken back home by a ship, and Youji was going to be taken back home by private jet. Aya was in business mode now. "All right. Now that we're here...let's go find what we're looking for."

They all split. Ken got off the plane a little more composed outside, but he was still very unsure on the inside. It was time to find his target.

_Schuldich had dropped him off at the flower shop, as he had promised. He was about to leave when Ken decided to stop him. He wrapped his arms behind Schuldich's waist. "Schu...I love you!"_

_Schuldich had frozen then, like he always did. Ken expected as much. He buried his face in his lover's back, desperately needing to tell Schuldich the truth. This was the very last chance he had to say anything himself, but Schuldich wasn't making the situation any easier. Somehow they ended up kissing, and Schuldich eventually took off for their home, leaving Ken to watch him go and beat himself up inside. He had eventually gone inside, and down into the basement of the shop, where the other members of Weiss would be waiting._

_Youji was the closest to the stairs, leaning on the same pole smoking, like he always did. "Did you tell him...?" the older man had drawled out._

_Everyone was looking at him for his answer. When Ken shook his head, they didn't seem like they had much to say to him. Ken ended up just sitting on the couch, numb. Manx was trying to clear up the finer details of the assignment, while the other three members of Weiss tried to give Ken silent comfort. He didn't feel any better, but he gave his friends credit for at least trying. _

Late night, on the tenth day on the mission, Ken had found his target. He was most unfortunate. What Persia had forseen as a possibility was now reality. Ken was eventually and unknowingly quickly surrounded by almost thirty people, including the target himself. Kingpin of some drug ring that was forcing children to do dirty jobs to earn money.

"Tsk, tsk, tsk..." the target snickered at him, "Little kitty's got himself in a tight corner...!"

Ken clenched his fists, almost about ready to reveal his weapon. _No one_ was allowed to call him a kitten except for the one man that he loved. He was going to make this man pay for the children he hurt, _and _the nickname. Ken lunged at him, but not before the other men working for him attacked first. The man fought dirty, forcing young men probably no older than seventeen to do the job. Ken didn't want to hurt a single one, that was his usual problem when he got involved in these things. But he remembered what Aya always said as he killed off a few of the young people. They weren't here to save lives. They were here to eliminate them.

He eventually reached his target, who chuckled. "Aw, look at this, kitty's got claws."

_That _made Ken mad. This man had not taunted him with the nickname just once, but twice now. Ken lunged forward, only to be hit hard on his back, and felt three gunshots go through his stomach. He fell to the ground hard with a thud, and was thrown in immense pain. Out of frustration, he tried to clear his head as much as possible as he felt the remaining teens punch and kick at him. One of the boys ripped a gash down the side of Ken's face with a knife.

"That's enough", the boss said eventually.

The teens relented, and Ken held his stomach in pain. "He won't bother us anymore. Stupid kitty's about to die."

Ken knew the man was probably speaking the truth. Just as they all turned to leave him there to die, Ken felt a burst of energy. He heard Schuldich's voice inside his mind.

_"You're just going to let them win, just like that?"_

Ken's hand twitched weakly.

_"You're going to let him call you by my name for you, and you're going to give up on your mission so soon?"_

Ken wasn't sure what was making him more annoyed. The mocking tone in those words, or how the comments were instigating him. Ken got up slowly, in pain, clutching his bleeding stomach. He couldn't die. Not now. He didn't even finish his mission yet. How could he show his face at home? Schuldich wouldn't want him anymore. He would call Ken worthless and weak. Just like this man just made him out to be. Weak.

He didn't know how he did it, but Ken suddenly had a burst of energy, and with all his strength, vaguely remembered screaming and slicing through them all. He gave his harshest blow to the leader, whose eyes feigned surprise at his last breath.

He fell to the ground soon after, feeling far too weak. He remembered crawling towards a lamp light, trying to get far away from where he was. He didn't want to die. Not yet, he couldn't die. His love was waiting for him. He could almost smell Schuldich. Smell the thick scent of cologne and cigarette smoke. He heard Schuldich's familiar mocking voice. From the very first moment they had met.

_Schuldich had put him up against the wall. "Better not leave me, kitten", Schuldich had said, "Better not let yourself get killed. I'm the only one who's allowed to kill you, pet. You'll do well to remember that."_

He had loathed those mocking words then. Fighting was nothing but a game to Schuldich. But now those words from that one battle, that one mission that seemed ages ago seemed like endearment to Ken. It made Ken miss Schuldich so much that the pain in his heart hurt far more than the pain on his face or sides. He struggled to reach the light, and thought only of Schuldich. Ken could've sworn he saw the older man's hands reaching out towards him.

_"I'm here, pet", Ken heard, "I'm here, love."_

Ken dreamed about Schuldich. In fact, he wasn't sure if it was a dream or not, but he definetly wasn't in hell. In fact, he was reliving one of the sweetest memories of Schuldich that he had.

_Ken had gotten sick. He and Schuldich weren't even really dating yet. This was the time where Schuldich seemed to be keeping close tabs on him, and when he never showed up at the flower shop to pester him, Ken found himself contemplating and missing the stupid German. Some days he got worried that Schuldich was losing interest in him, and for some reason, Ken hated that. That was why he always found himself looking for the German on the days it seemed the German finally decided to stop coming for him._

_It was raining hard when Ken decided to take his frustrations out by playing soccer alone in a field. He was kind of hoping the German would find him there playing, like he did the last time when Ken had been teaching some kids how to play. The German never came._

_The next morning, Ken got pretty sick, and he refused to eat anything. The other members didn't even know that Ken had gone out earlier, since Ken had slipped out the backway and had taken a shower when he returned during his breaktime. Ken stayed cooped up in his room, thinking about where the German was._

_Omi and the others got the wrong idea, and thought Ken was only refusing to eat because the German hadn't come by to pester him all morning or all yesterday, which was only partially the truth. The whole truth was that Ken eventually felt too sick to even think about the German, and gained himself a fever and found himself drifting off to sleep._

_He woke up to a concerned German nursing him back to health. When Schuldich realized his patient had woken up, he placed one hand next to Ken's head, and place the other hand, still holding a wet towel on his hip. "Well it's about time you got up. You're a stubborn healer, you know that? Your body just likes to stay sick", the German grumbled._

_Ken remembered blushing. "How long have you been here...?"_

_The German sighed. "Past two days you were knocked out."_

_"How did you know..."_

_"That you were a weak little lamb? Your short friend told me. Said you weren't eating or anything. Told me I should probably come by, that it would help", the German snorted, "I still don't see the point of an enemy nursing an enemy to health. It doesn't make sense how that would help, but in your case, I guess it did."_

_Ken laughed a little at the first things that Schuldich had said. He assumed Schuldich had been talking about Omi. Omi had been very worried when Ken had declined his first three meals and usual in-between snack. This seemed to cause the German's expression to soften a bit. The cold towel was being dabbed on his forehead now. Ken sighed in relief at the cool touch, his warm face was feeling much cooler, and he was starting to feel less light headed. _

_"Feeling better now, kitten? Think you can eat something...?"_

_Ken shook his head, but the stubborn German was already gone. Ken felt a bit sad for a while until Schuldich had come back with a tray of steaming hot food like he had never seen before. Ken raised an eyebrow in question as Schuldich propped him up into a sitting position. He felt a small tug in his mind and realized that Schuldich was probably reading what he was thinking. "It's special dishes from Germany. I made them", Schuldich muttered as he set up the tray on a small table and scooped up a spoonful of something._

_Ken blushed as Schuldich put the spoon close to his mouth, and Ken looked away. He blushed even more when Schuldich used his free hand to force Ken's eyes to him. "All right, pet", he had said, "You're going to eat this now. It's not poison. You'd better eat it unless you want to die of starvation."_

_Ken mumbled, "Why should you care...?"_

_Schuldich then forced open Ken's mouth and stuck the spoon inside, causing Ken to have his eyes wide open and then he began to chew, approving very much of what he was being fed. "Because first of all, if you died, I wouldn't have anyone to torture", Schuldich stated simply, "And secondly..."_

_Ken looked up when Schuldich stopped talking, and blushed furiously when he realized how close Schuldich was to his face. Schuldich brushed away a couple of Ken's bangs. "Secondly...?" he asked._

_Schuldich nodded once, as if approving something in his mind. "Secondly...you're far too cute."_

_Ken blushed and didn't have a chance to protest when Schuldich slipped his tongue inside his mouth. In fact, because he had been so sick, he had lost all firepower necessary to pretend that he wasn't enjoying the attention. _

_Only after he got better, a few days later, did Ken start questioning Schuldich's visits, his randomly inspired arguments, and especially most of all-the passionate kisses. Soon enough, they became a couple. One didn't ask the other to start, they just did. The visits turned into something a bit humbler, where Schuldich would bring Ken chocolates and small trinkets, and the arguments were more playful banter. Kissing led to something a bit more comfortable to Ken, hugging and hand-holding. Not that Ken really complained when Schuldich started making out with him, it was just still all so new to him at the time._

_Schuldich began pulling him away from the flower shop every once in a while just to have a small outing. The small outings became extensive dates. The dates were what Ken was starting to look forward to so much, day after day. They weren't all perfect. In fact, some days Schuldich only took Ken out because he needed stress relief from a bad day from Schwarz, and Ken accepted that. He knew that the harsh words that very seldomly led to harsh blows were not truly meant for him. It hurt, but he knew that because he loved Schuldich, he'd have to deal with them. He knew that if it got too bad, all he had to do was call on his friends at Weiss and they would bail him out. But Ken was always glad it never had to come to that. He never wanted to anyway._

Eventually, though Ken didn't quite know how it happened, he found himself in some kind of clinic. Instinct eventually took over reason, and Ken decided to sneak out of the clinic. Wincing all the while, who knows how long he had been knocked out, Ken eventually realized that he had been out cold for over five months, as he asked around people for the date and time. It took him longer still to retrieve his gloves from confiscation, and even longer still to get a decent low-profile job so he could get a couple new clothes and eat some food before even bothering to look for his ride. Ken had gone to where his ride was supposed to have been, but as he suspected, Persia wasn't going to make them wait for him forever. He was probably accepted for dead by now.

It was several months before Ken had enough money to find the means to go back home. He returned home mid-March. It was raining, but Ken didn't care. It was good to be home. Away from the mission. He had completed it and survived, something he could only credit to his wonderful Schuldich's existence.

He didn't know what snapped in him, but Ken suddenly found himself running. Running as fast as he could, hand still holding his pained side, but he was ignoring that now. He was running towards his home now, like a stolen child finally escaping from a kidnapping. He felt the rain pound on his back. Nearby the flower shop, Ken decided to take a back route. He would confront the members of Weiss later. Right now, he wanted to go home. Home to comfort. Home to _Schuldich_.

On his way, he stopped and "borrowed" an umbrella that had been sitting outside of someone's home, probably out there to dry when the rain stopped. Opening it, he put it over his head. He wanted to be dry for Schuldich. He knew the older man hated Ken being wet, and most of all-Ken getting _him _wet. Thunder crashed as he made the final leap around the corner to the familiar gate of their home. Ken kicked open the stubborn gate, only to stop in awe of seeing Schuldich in front of him sitting on the first step of the stairs going up towards their home, arms outstretched-much like he would have done on a regular day; and getting very soaked in the rain.

He smiled lovingly as Schuldich's eyes slowly opened. He watched Schuldich almost frozen as the older man was getting up to reach him, as if he was seeing a ghost. Ken met him halfway, only to be crushed by the most filling embrace Ken had ever felt, forcing him to drop the umbrella. A pang went up Ken's wounded side, causing Ken to hug Schuldich back tighter. Ken bit his lip. He wasn't going to worry Schuldich with the pain now. Not when they had just gotten back together.

He felt Schuldich crying. He didn't understand. Was he worth crying for? Ken melted into Schuldich's hold as he thought about this. He never thought he was worthy of Schuldich's tears. Schuldich pushed him back out into view, and Ken flashed him one of his best smiles, in his own personal opinion. _"Nothing's wrong anymore" Ken thought, "I did it. I made it. I'm home..."_

Ken smirked at Schuldich and imitated Schuldich's mocking tone, usually reserved for him, "I thought you said you'd never let yourself get wet?"

He held his breath as Schuldich leaned in closer to him and whisper, "_That _was _before_ you came into my life..."

Ken laughed softly. "Is that-" he had been meaning to say 'is that so' when Schuldich said something very far more shocking. A simple statement that Ken had always thought that what Schuldich had already hinted and said was as close as he was going to get to it. A phrase that melted his heart. A phrase he had always been longing to hear.

"I love you...Ken."

Ken's eyes widened in shock as all of a sudden he felt Schuldich's lips on his. Ken's eyes brimmed brightly with tears as memories flowed through his mind. All the times that they had fought against each other. The heartbreak that Schuldich occasionally put him through, and the laughter that they shared constantly. It all seemed to blur in his mind.

When Schuldich broke away, Ken felt a new burst of energy. Ken hugged back tightly, causing Schuldich a small surprise, and after swaying a while, they ended up falling backwards into Schuldich's garden. Ken knew Schuldich was probably going to get him back later for the mud, but for now he was content with lying on top of his lover outside, peacefully. "I love you too, Schu..." Ken whispered.

They stayed like that for who knows how long. They knew they probably should be going inside to go greet the members of Weiss, bring announcement of Ken's return. Ken really wanted to see his friends again as well. But for now, Ken was only focused on the one in front of him, the one he loved, the one he absolutely had to come back to. He was here. He was home. He felt Schuldich ruffle his hair affectionately, and smiled happily, burying his face in the crook of Schuldich's neck.

No more reason to cry. Only laughter and smiles from now on.

OWARI

Saiki.Kensuke.Yuuta: So how was the second part with Ken's side of the story? Please review! I'd love to hear your feedback!


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